SA’s nuclear future under the spotlight

Jul 14, 2017

The topical issue of nuclear power and its role in Africa will come under discussion in a one-day Nuclear Forum to be held in Sandton next week.
The Forum will take place at the Nuclear Theatre on the exhibition floor and is free to attend.
Featuring local and international experts and delegates from Russian energy group Rosatom, a contender for South Africa’s nuclear expansion project, the Nuclear Forum will be a major highlight on the programme at Power-Gen & DistribuTech Africa.
Nigel Blackaby, director of conferences at event organizer PennWell International Power Group, says: “Countries across Africa, including Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia are reported to be considering nuclear power, while South Africa is on the brink of embarking on a new phase of nuclear development.
“Amid this renewed focus on the potential for nuclear energy, our nuclear panel discussions and Rosatom’s participation in Power-Gen & DistribuTech Africa have raised keen interest in the past. This prompted our launch of the one day forum for in-depth discussions on the opportunities and risks of nuclear energy in Africa.”
The forum, to be staged at Power-Gen & DistribuTech Africa on Wednesday 19 July, is designed to raise awareness and understanding of the key issues around nuclear energy. Among the issues to be discussed will be Unpacking South Africa’s Nuclear Strategy and What Africa can learn from world nuclear programmes. Viktor Polikarpov, regional vice-president: sub-Saharan Africa at Rosatom will also present Rosatom’s Solutions for Empowering Africa.
Experts participating in the programme will include Knox Msebenzi, chairman of the Power Institute for East and Southern Africa; Ruby Ramatsui, Senior Executive: Pelindada Enterprises at NECSA; Dr Wolsey Barnard, CEO of South Africa’s National Radioactive Waste Disposal Institute; Sedick Davis, GM nuclear projects at Eskom; Loyiso Tyabashe, Senior Manager – Nuclear New Build at Eskom; Matthieu Maurin, Project Leader of EDF; David Nicholls, Chief Nuclear Officer at Eskom; George Njenga, Regional Executive, Steam Power Systems, Sub-Sahara Africa at GE Power and a representative from the Kenya Nuclear Electricity Board.